Reverend's Writings, Memorabilia Offer Rare View Of Avon In 1700s

AVON — For several decades in the 1700s, the Rev. Rufus Hawley crisscrossed modern-day Avon to celebrate marriages, pray with his fellow farmers and comfort grieving families.

Life could not have been easy.

Hawley, like many pre-Revolutionary War settlers, saw numerous friends and children lost to disease and injuries, including his only daughter. Traveling conditions were harsh, and politics in the colonies were in upheaval.

Now, more than two centuries later, Hawley's voluminous diaries and memorabilia from his descendants have passed from private hands into the protective ownership of the town's library and historical society.

Several boxes of photos, letters, journals and other items recently were donated to the Avon Free Public Library's Marian Hunter History Room, which is run jointly by the library and the Avon Historical Society.

Although it has not been completely sorted and catalogued, the collection is estimated to comprise more than 1,000 items.

``Just to know that the whole collection was coming here, to a permanent home, was so exciting,'' said Nora Howard, director of the historical society. ``It's really an amazing piece of Avon history.''

Hawley, who was born in Granby in 1741, moved to Avon -- then known as the Northington section of Farmington -- to lead its congregational church.

The Hawley homestead, on the southwest corner of Country Club and Old Farms roads, stayed in the family for almost two centuries until a descendant sold it in the 1950s to Robert and Gladys August.

That descendant explained that her children were not interested in the family memorabilia, so the Augusts gladly accepted the diaries, pictures and other items as part of their purchase.

``We had them pretty near 50 years, and nobody really paid much attention to them,'' said Gladys August, who sold the home to a young family a few years ago.

She studied and marveled over the diaries, photos and other items for years, deciding recently to donate the collection to the library's history room so it would be preserved for future generations of Avon history buffs.

``They kept all of it safe for the last 50 years. I really consider them the stewards of this collection,'' library Director Virginia Vocelli said of the Augusts, who donated the items in March.

The centerpiece of the collection is Rufus Hawley's diaries, which consist of 31 tiny books spanning roughly 1763 to 1800.

His brief, concise entries always start with a few words on the weather -- a pattern he maintained even on the day in December 1784 when Sophia, the youngest of his seven children, fell into a caldron of boiling milk.

The 2-year-old girl was so badly scalded that she died two days later, despite her family's constant nursing and prayers.

``Fair and very pleasant,'' Hawley noted of the weather that morning.

Then, he noted that Sophia had died, and that he ``did but little of anything'' all day -- a rare glimpse into the emotions of a man whose diary entries almost never betrayed any inner feelings.

Howard, who is transcribing Hawley's diaries, said they already have shed light on some mysteries and mentioned people no one knew existed.

Hawley's diaries also could become a treasure trove for genealogical buffs from other long-established Avon families.

He mentions more than 1,400 other people, giving extra details about many of them that have helped historians track those early settlers. Families such as the Woodfords, Thompsons and Millers make frequent appearances in his writings.

The family collection continues with several letters, books and other items from Hawley's children and grandchildren.

By the late 1800s, the Hawleys had a permanent home in Hartford and used their Avon estate -- which they called ``Avonside'' -- as a country retreat.

Some Hawley descendants in Ohio, Pennsylvania and California have contacted Howard and other local historians for background on the Hawleys, and one descendant of Rufus Hawley's eldest son visited from Pennsylvania to view the collection.

``He became very emotional when he touched the diary, having that connection with his ancestor,'' Gladys August said.